Tiberius
Member
I have read in the papers recently that in the event of military conflict with Iraq the primary plan being bandied about is one in which Iraq's forces outside of Baghdad would be blitzed as quickly as possible, but with only a "contingency plan" for going into Baghdad. The theory is that going in to Baghdad would become unnecessary do to rebellion or coup overthrow of Saddam Hussein.
It seems to me that this plan would probably lead to an incredible debacle, casting us as the worst possible villains. In this scenario Saddam essentially holds the entire city hostage. His troops are posted throughout in Mosques and other buildings with plenty of civilian occupants to use as human shields. American commanders have not got the wherewithal to handle this type of situation. If we attack we slaughter civilians by the thousands (or Iraqi troops kill them if we don't get enough to look bad). If we don't storm the city, a stalemate ensues in which we have to feed the populace ( and therefor Saddam's soldiers), and the situation spirals downwards politically.
I hope that when we go in it is feasible to, in conjunction with the armored spearheads and marine landings to secure Basrah, that some kind of airborne/ airmobile operation is conducted to go straight into Baghdad environs and neutralize Saddam's local troops to prevent this situation from evolving. Hopefully the public plan is a ruse or bluff to put them off guard and allow easier immediate access to Baghdad.
It seems to me that this plan would probably lead to an incredible debacle, casting us as the worst possible villains. In this scenario Saddam essentially holds the entire city hostage. His troops are posted throughout in Mosques and other buildings with plenty of civilian occupants to use as human shields. American commanders have not got the wherewithal to handle this type of situation. If we attack we slaughter civilians by the thousands (or Iraqi troops kill them if we don't get enough to look bad). If we don't storm the city, a stalemate ensues in which we have to feed the populace ( and therefor Saddam's soldiers), and the situation spirals downwards politically.
I hope that when we go in it is feasible to, in conjunction with the armored spearheads and marine landings to secure Basrah, that some kind of airborne/ airmobile operation is conducted to go straight into Baghdad environs and neutralize Saddam's local troops to prevent this situation from evolving. Hopefully the public plan is a ruse or bluff to put them off guard and allow easier immediate access to Baghdad.